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RADIO INTERVIEW - A.B.PATTERSON

29/11/2016

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EASTSIDE FM 89.7

I'll be chatting with Eric Gyors on his "Drivetime" program this Wednesday, 30 November 2016, from about 4.30 p.m. onwards.

If you're around Sydney's eastern parts, feel free to tune in on the radio, old-style, or of course online!

Looking forward to chatting again with Eric, and there'll be a couple of signed copies of Harry's World going as giveaways to listeners.

Happy listening.  Cheers.
ABP



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A MILESTONE DAY - the 2nd print run for "Harry's World"!

24/11/2016

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The second printing of Harry's World is here!  I had the order confirmed today.
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​As always, my great thanks to Andy McDermott and his wonderful team at Publicious Pty Ltd.  If ever you want to self-publish a book, Publicious are the team to work with.

It doesn't seem that long since I was gleefully opening that first carton from the first print run of Harry's World.  But that was in July last year, and as you can see from the photo I'm down to my last 4 boxes of the initial batch.  When they first arrived there were about 30 boxes and it seemed like a mountain, albeit I still smile and enjoy it every time I pick up a copy.  (Sorry if that sounds a little indulgent, but when you see 5 years creative work emerge in book form, it feels bloody good, as it should.)  But the mountain has been devoured and now there are less than 100 copies of the first print run remaining.
Now it's just a question if the first print run of the sequel book, Harry's Quest, will come in ahead of the third print run of Harry's World???

Whatever, it's all great Harry - hard-boiled, noir, and sexy, very sexy.  Please enjoy!
ABP


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Author Talk on Wednesday 23 November at Tuggerah

19/11/2016

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I'll be cruising up to Tuggerah Library on Wednesday morning next week to do an author talk and meet readers on the NSW Central Coast.
It's a 10 a.m. start on Wednesday 23 November 2016.
​See you there for a coffee and lots of crime talk!


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Sydney, November, it's jacarandas. And Harry, of course, with the Emerald Bar.

10/11/2016

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We're into November here in Sydney so the jacarandas are in full bloom and it is truly beautiful.

And how pertinent to Harry and his world.

Harry's World opened with Harry's Tribulations, set in November with the jacarandas.

A couple of quotes...

"The jacarandas in Kelly Street were in full bloom as Harry wandered along, pub-bound. A light rain moistened his balding head. In the gentle early evening November breeze there was a steady cascade of purple flowers descending onto the ground. Harry loved this time of year in these streets..."

"The lavender rainfall and lilac carpet on the mishmash of bitumen and concrete was almost enough to teleport Harry to an alternative, and much improved, universe."

And of course the Emerald Bar appears in the opening story.  For connoisseurs of Harry's World, you have probably worked out that the Emerald Bar is in reality the Australian Youth Hotel (AYH), my local and favourite pub, and the site of my book launch for Harry's World.  It couldn't be any more appropriate.
​As a side-note, over the years of writing Harry's World, there were many portions drafted as I sat enjoying an evening at the Aussie Youth.

I hope you like the photos I took today of the AYH and the jacarandas.  

Cheers.

ABP


 

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Harry and his flowers

10/11/2016

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PI Harry Kenmare - the tough hard-boiled PI, who loves his drink and his women, and the more the better.  And he's not averse to some serious violence when he feels some scumbag truly deserves it.

And he likes flowers???

This is a quite deliberate character trait I gave Harry, as paradoxical as it may seem.  Just as my website, despite being that of a crime author, is full of photos of colourful flowers and foliage.  Again, deliberately so.  Does it seem strange?

Apart from my own love of flowers, it is quite simply my desire to balance the darkness and noir in my writing with some beauty and colour.  I want my readers to feel the darkness when that is in the story, but also to have some respite, hence the flowers, trees, and colours throughout Harry's World.

I guess it is my own unique take on hard-boiled noir: I want to hit the darkest of dark, but also to see some beauty shining through.  Life's a balance, after all.

Now, if you've read Harry's World, you'll be familiar with the fragrance of night jessamine (Harry's favourite) and the purple flowers of the jacaranda trees.
Well, here in Sydney the jacarandas are in full bloom (see my next blog) and my night jessamine shrub on our balcony has broken into bloom this week and the smell is truly magnificent.  The white flowers of the night jessamine may not look impressive, but their aroma is truly one of Nature's wonders.  But you have to wait until after dark!
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Cheers.
ABP


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WESTERN LIBERAL DEMOCRACY - A MOMENTOUS DAY - A NEW WORLD?

9/11/2016

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WTF?  Did that really just happen?  Probably not uncommon remarks across the Western world tonight (Australian time).
As we now absorb the fact that Donald Trump has won the election to become the 45th President of the United States, what should we take from this news?  Well, I'm an author and I'm interested in world affairs, not to mention freedom and democracy, so I can't help myself but comment.  I've been at home all day watching the process unfold in the U.S.  Yes, I should have been writing, but it was rather distracting and compelling.  And as an Australian, living under the comfort of the security guarantee provided by the U.S. since 1945, where America is going has to be of prime interest to me and my fellow Aussies. 

There is so much going on in my head right now - I'll try and limit it to a few salient points:
1.  Democracy, and the right to freely and genuinely vote, are very precious assets (not overly popular when you look at the world as a whole).  The U.S.A. has always been the beacon for these values.  Today, the American people exercised their democratic right to vote.  Their wishes through their votes must be respected.  Absolutely.
2.  I've never met Mr Trump, so I can't really comment objectively on him as a person.  Some of the things he has said, and some of the views he has espoused, really don't sit well with me.  I am hoping that the worst of these were campaign bluster, spewed out expediently in order to win votes (as awful as that is in what it says about some voters), and that in reality as President he behaves differently.  I hope...
3.  I also hope that he can, as he espoused in his victory speech, unify the American people.  I would love him to make America "great again", as long as that "great" is inclusive of ALL Americans, and it doesn't cause conflict elsewhere, and it has the value of freedom as the centrepiece.  This will depend on whether or not he was serious in all the objectionable things he said.  If it turns out that he was, then he hardly has a vision to treat all Americans with dignity and respect, and freedom will certainly suffer.
4.  Australia and many other countries have enjoyed the largesse of American military protection for decades.  This is likely to change, and we, as well as many others, may have to be prepared to pay substantially more towards our defence.
5.  But for those still going "WTF?"  Actually, we should not be at all surprised by today's result.  What we are seeing is the manifestation of popular disquiet that has been brewing for years.  In summary, and I stress this is my personal view, the political classes and our political establishments in our Western democracies have become so arrogant, so corrupt, so complacent, and so greedy for power, that very significant chunks of the population have been left voiceless and politically impotent.  And now those disenfranchised masses are speaking up.  We saw it today in the U.S., we saw in in the U.K. in the Brexit vote, we saw it in the resurgence of One Nation here in Australia, we are seeing reactionary political movements in various European countries, and we are going to be seeing it in other places as well in the near future.  And, we are not short of arrogant and complacent politicians in Australia, I assure you.
6.  The very fact that the political classes are shocked at Mr Trump's victory is overwhelming evidence in itself of their arrogance and disconnection from the people and their communities.  As the rich get richer, on the backs of the poor who are getting poorer, sooner or later something has to break.  History is littered with examples.
7.  Who knows how a Trump Presidency will work out.  But this is for sure; what we have seen is a major democratic country voting against the political establishment, against the complacency and corruption of the accepted political establishment, and for a change, hopefully for the better.  I really do hope they achieve this.  Again, I hope...
8.  But democracy???  We cannot take it for granted - it is a fragile and precious gem.  Our elected political leaders MUST learn to respect this, just as they must learn to respect that WE run the country, not them.  And that they are in their comfortable, well-paid, and perk-laden offices to SERVE us.  I am quite convinced that the majority of them have diligently learnt to forget what that word actually means.
9.  What do I want from my elected representatives?  I want ethics, honesty, humility, and competence.  What I want to eradicate are self-interest, party politics, spin, and all the bullshit.  Is it really too much to ask???
10.  Did I mention I hope?

Cheers to a free Australia!  And my very best wishes to our American cousins!
ABP


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AUTHOR TALK - TUGGERAH LIBRARY - 23 November 2016

6/11/2016

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I'll be at Tuggerah Library on the morning of 23 November 2016.  Starting at 10.00 a.m., I'll be enjoying a morning brew with the Central Coast crime fiction lovers and talking all about Harry's World and my crime writing. 
If you live up that way, please do come and join me.
ABP
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AUTHOR TALK - A.B.Patterson & Nigel Bartlett - 10 November 2016

3/11/2016

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Nigel Bartlett and myself together again, this time at Sutherland Library.  I really enjoy our joint author talks, and so I'm looking forward to meeting readers in the Shire.
We will be at Sutherland Library on Thursday 10 November 2016, at 6.30 p.m.
See you there!  It's free, of course, but the booking link is below:

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Book Now
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A.B.Patterson
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Nigel Bartlett
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A Great Success - 5 Crime Authors at the Nude Bar!

2/11/2016

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It was a great Sunday afternoon at the Nude Bar in the Australian Youth Hotel.  The two hours of talking crime and thriller writing could easily have gone for much longer, and the crowd present clearly enjoyed it, wonderfully presented by our moderator, Janine Hewitt.
I loved the opportunity to talk over a wine with the other authors - L.A.Larkin, Bruce McCabe and Candice Fox.  Having read them all, it was so good to finally have a chat.  The other author, Nigel Bartlett, of course, is a regular writing companion of mine.
My many thanks to all involved, and to Zelman, Nigel and crew at the Aussie Youth for hosting us.
I think we should do it again!!!
ABP


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